Lady Raiders' bench worries coach Sharp

Posted: Sunday, December 12, 2004

Patrick GonzalesMorris News Service

LUBBOCK - Texas Tech coach Marsha Sharp was in a bittersweet mood following her team's 79-46 win over Oral Roberts on Thursday.

On one hand, she was pleased with the starters, who set the tone for the Lady Raiders with a strong start. On the other hand, she was upset with the reserves, who failed to maintain the level of play when they entered the game.

The final result was another blowout win for No. 13 Tech (4-1) - its third in eight days. But this time of year, a victory may be just as important as developing a deep bench, especially for a team with only six letterwinners.

"I felt like we made some strides there the last game, and this time, I felt like we didn't do a very good job of making plays and really having the right mentality," Sharp said. "We're in a situation where that has to get better for us to have the type of basketball team we need in January."

Sharp was encouraged by what she saw from the reserves during a 109-49 victory over Miami (Fla.) on Monday. In that game they came off the bench to outscore Miami's reserves 29-10. As a result, Tech was able to hand the Hurricanes their second worst loss in school history.

The Lady Raiders started Thursday's matchup against Oral Roberts in similar fashion, building a 35-14 lead by the 7:53 mark of the first half. But they struggled with consistency when they unloaded their bench. In the end, Tech received a combined 15 points on 5-of-27 shooting from its reserves.

"I'm disappointed with the way we played off the bench," Sharp said. "We'll go back to the drawing board and see if we can make them step up a little more on Sunday."

As for the starters, Sharp has been pleased with how they've played so far this season. Erin Grant, Cisti Greenwalt, LaToya Davis, Chesley Dabbs and Alesha Robertson have started all but one matchup and are averaging a combined 58.5 points. Robertson leads the way with 18 points per matchup, while Greenwalt is averaging 15.4 points, 11.4 rebounds and 4.8 blocked shots per game.

Having the sharpshooter Robertson on the perimeter and the 6-foot-5 Greenwalt patrolling the paint has provided Tech with a tough-to-defend, high-low offense.

"I think we've built a lot of trust between us five," Greenwalt said. "When they kick it in and we're double-teamed, we know that if we pass it back out they can all hit the 3 and have confidence in taking that shot. I think the key so far has been the confidence and trust in each other."